You are here

California Desert

The California Desert contains tremendous biological diversity – more than 1,800 types of plants and 600 wildlife species – as well as cultural and tourism attractions ranging from old mining trails to ancient petroglyphs.

California Desert

A multi-colored expanse of sand dunes, wildflowers, lush oases and craggy rock formations lies almost hidden between the bustling cities of Los Angeles and Las Vegas. The sheer variety of life, exotic landscape and history here demands we protect it.

This 25 million-acre expanse of mostly-public lands also contains cultural and tourism attractions ranging from old stagecoachtrails to ancient petroglyphs.

Work we are doing

View of the Soda Mountains from Cronise Sand Dunes, located in the Soda Mountains Wilderness Study Area within the Mojave Desert. Credit: John Dittli.

The Wilderness Society is working with California desert communities and other conservation groups to preserve some of the most unique natural and cultural landmarks in the American West. We are also working to guide renewable energy projects to suitable areas, away from the most sensitive lands in the region.

Working to preserve 1.6 million desert acres

We are working to support Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s efforts to protect the California desert. Her California Desert Protection Act of 2009 and 2011 sought to preserve the Mojave Desert’s spectacular wildlands

We continue to support the Senator Feinstein's goals to achieve the following:

Two new national monuments

Mojave Trails National Monument: This new national monument would bridge the area between Joshua Tree National Park and the Mojave National Preserve.

Its 941,000 acres would include Pisgah lava flow, Amboy Crater, Kelso Dunes Wilderness and wildlands along Route 66 that include Sleeping Beauty Valley.

Mojave National Preserve. Credit: mlhradio, flickr.

Sand to Snow National Monument: The area of the proposed Sand to Snow Monument includes a diverse transition from lower desert areas with Joshua tree forests, to the year-round Whitewater River, to snow-capped alpine peaks, including Mount San Gorgonio, Southern California’s tallest mountain. The 134,000-acre national monument would include wildlife corridors linking Joshua Tree National Park to the Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains, and bighorn sheep and desert tortoise habitat.

Additions to our national parks

Death Valley National Park: This national park would be expanded by about 32,000 acres.

Additions would include the southern geological gem known as the “Bowling Alley” with its deep canyons and bajadas.

The existing Death Valley National Park. Credit: Andrew Mace, flickr.

Mojave National Preserve: This desert preserve would increase by about 29,000 acres. The addition would include the scenic Castle Mountains, the missing piece of the Lanfair Valley.

Additions to Joshua Tree National Park

Protections for rivers and creeks: Preserving about 70 miles of Deep Creek, Amargosa River, Surprise Canyon and other important waterways as Wild and Scenic Rivers.

Five new wilderness areas: The California Desert Protection Act would protect federal wildlands in Death Valley National Park and other areas as designated wilderness.

Boosting tourism

Death Valley and Joshua Tree National Parks and the Mojave National Preserve attract nearly 3 million visitors each year. Travelers spend more than $230 million annually on outdoor recreation in those places. Maintaining the beauty of the desert will help contribute to a healthy tourist economy in California.

Renewable energy

The beautiful Silurian Valley in the Mojave desert should be preserved for future generations to explore. Credit: John Dittli.

The California desert is home to some of the Southwest’s wildest places. It’s important that we find a balance between appropriately-sited clean energy development and protections for the region’s wild lands. The Wilderness Society is working with conservation partners, the federal Bureau of Land Management, other state and federal agencies and project developers to limit impacts to wildlands and wildlife habitat and maximize clean energy benefits in the desert

Guiding renewable development to the right places

We are working to protect key wildlife habitat and wildlands and guide renewable energy projects to the right places. Our list of desert treasures represents some of the special places in the California desert that deserve protection and should be off limits to development. This work includes our efforts to influence the Desert Renewable Energy Conservation Plan (DRECP) which was released in September 2014.

The DRECP is a joint federal and state plan that seeks to preserve delicate desert habitat and also identify appropriate locations for clean energy development. TWS is working to make sure this plan will help California achieve its clean energy goals and conserve special desert lands.

Protecting the desert’s heritage for future generations

The desert is part of America’s iconic Old West, and its wildlife, scenery, heritage and recreation are important to local communities as well as visitors from around the world.

The Wilderness Society has worked to limit impacts to wildlands and wildlife habitat. We have engaged with local, state federal agencies to help ensure that proposed clean energy projects avoid and minimize impacts to sensitive public lands and wildlife habitat.

Our partners

The Wilderness Society is part of a coalition of community, conservation and business groups working to preserve the California Desert.

View of the Cady Mountains from the California Desert. Credit: John Dittli.

The historic ghost towns, sand dunes, mountains and spectacular flora and fauna of the vast California Desert make it a one-of-a-kind destination. Hot spots like Death Valley and Joshua Tree national parks, the Mojave National Preserve and many Desert Treasures are among the highlights.

But some of these Desert Treasures still need permanent protection, and The Wilderness Society is working to ensure they will be preserved for future generations.

Why Wilderness

Wilderness is a precious resource with many human, natural and economic benefits that we need to protect.

Today, the Interior Department's Bureau of Land Management announced a new methane waste rule to replace its own regulations that went into effect only about one year ago. The new rule eliminates important environmental and public health protections established under the 2016 rule and will result in increased natural gas waste and reduced taxpayer revenue.

The following statement is from Jamie Williams, president of The Wilderness Society:

President Trump’s infrastructure and budget proposals are essentially Valentine’s gifts to oil, gas, coal and other extractive interests.

The plans would increase fossil fuel development on public lands, weaken environmental safeguards, drain funds from conservation programs and even allow selling off public lands to pay for infrastructure.

Public lands and environmental protections would be steamrolled under President Trump’s proposed infrastructure plan according to The Wilderness Society’s review of leaked White House documents. His proposed fiscal year 2019 budget would likely further hobble budgets of federal land management agencies and choke vital programs like the Land and Water Conservation Fund. Both are expected to be released on February 12.